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    <title><![CDATA[Hivos Online, Humanistisch Instituut voor Ontwikkelingssamenwerking]]>: <![CDATA[Hivos Knowledge Programme]]></title>
    <link>http://www.hivos.net</link>
    <description>
Welcome to the website of the Hivos Knowledge Programme. The platform for knowledge development on issues imperative to the global development sector. How to understand and innovate support for civil society building, how to promote pluralism in times of growing intolerance, how to adapt to rapid changes such as the globalisation of markets? The development sector needs new knowledge, and more specifically, appropriate knowledge to tackle specific knowledge gaps. This programme aims at developing knowledge on issues central to the work of civil society organisations and for the development sector at large. The main themes are: Civil Society Building, Promoting Pluralism, Civil Society in West Asia, Small Producer Agency in the Globalized Market and Digital Natives with a Cause?

</description>
    <language>eng-GB</language>
    
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			<title><![CDATA[Avatar meets the Amazon: how to support indigenous movements?]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Publications2/Avatar-meets-the-Amazon-how-to-support-indigenous-movements</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
Movies can prove to be a powerful tool to raise awareness for a certain cause. Recently the buzz around blockbuster Avatar is being used by environmental, indigenous and human rights organizations to create global media attention for their struggle. In Avatar the indigenous Na’vi people fight to save their land and traditional way of living on planet Pandora from human beings who want to destroy it to extract minerals for energy supply on planet Earth. The story in Avatar is based on fiction, but many film critics and social movements have made the comparison to the real life struggle of indigenous people in the Amazon. This has resulted in lively debates on the internet. 

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			<pubDate>Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:23:30 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Avatar meets the Amazon: how to support indigenous movements?]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-Building/News/Avatar-meets-the-Amazon-how-to-support-indigenous-movements</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
Movies can prove to be a powerful tool to raise awareness for a certain cause. Recently the buzz around blockbuster Avatar is being used by environmental, indigenous and human rights organizations to create global media attention for their struggle. In Avatar the indigenous Na’vi people fight to save their land and traditional way of living on planet Pandora from human beings who want to destroy it to extract minerals for energy supply on planet Earth. The story in Avatar is based on fiction, but many film critics and social movements have made the comparison to the real life struggle of indigenous people in the Amazon. This has resulted in lively debates on the internet. 

]]></description>
			<pubDate>Sun, 14 Mar 2010 23:22:20 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Launch Publication Beyond Orthodox Approaches]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Publications2/Launch-Publication-Beyond-Orthodox-Approaches</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
Within the framework of Knowledge Programme Civil Society in West Asia, Hivos in collaboration with NIMD ad University of Amsterdam, will launch on 26 March 2010 the policy paper ‘Beyond Orthodox Approaches, Assessing Opportunities for Democratic Support in the Middle East and North Africa. The launch will take place at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.


This publication aims to explore what role - if any - external organisations, such as Hivos and NIMD, can play to further democratisation in the region. The authors of this policy paper have examined and reflected upon the programmatic opportunities and potential obstacles for engaging in and with the region. By increasing their knowledge of the political landscapes of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and by focusing on potential windows of opportunities or the closings thereof - where increased authoritarianism prohibits possibilities for assistance – Hivos and NIMD hope to improve their understanding of the dynamics in the region and what could potentially constitute vital building blocks for a programme in the region. Hivos and NIMD are fully aware that the political systems in the region provide challenges for democracy support. Research on possible methodologies that focus on levelling the playing field in uncongenial authoritarian settings are therefore essential. NIMD works predominantly in young democracies and fragile states that require different programmatic approaches than when working in the political setting of the Middle East and North Africa. Hivos, in contrast, does work in authoritarian and semi-authoritarian settings and is searching for ways to circumvent programmatic constraints, in addition to deepening its knowledge of the political systems in the region.


Hivos and NIMD want to maximise their complementarities of expertise by pooling resources: experience and research into democracy support. Hivos and NIMD would subsequently like to assess the possibilities for joint programmatic approaches. Hivos and NIMD feel that it is imperative to learn from one another. They believe that civil and political society can be regarded as two sides of a tunnel, interlinked – and especially in the MENA region – frequently merged in one single organisation. Understanding both types of societies as well as the relationship between them is essential for fostering democratisation processes in the region.


If you are interested in attending this event, please send an email to Kawa Hassan at khassan@hivos.nl. 


Date: 26-03-2010


Time: 15.00-17.00


Venue: : VOC hal, Oost Indisch Huis E0.02, Kloveniersburgwal 48, University of Amsterdam 

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			<pubDate>Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:10:57 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Meet the Web 2.0 Suicide Machine]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Digital-Natives-with-a-Cause/News/Meet-the-Web-2.0-Suicide-Machine</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
In the new year, 2010, one of the most startling stories was of mass suicides. About 50,000 people were affected. Legal cases were filed. The interwebz were abuzz with the tale of how they did it. There was talk about a website that was responsible for this. The blogosphere went into a frenzy discussing the ‘new lease of life’ that these suicides provided. Videos of people caught in the act found their way onto popular video distributing spaces. And for everybody who talked about it, it was partly a joke and partly a gimmick. However, for a significant population, across the globe, the news came as a shock and a moment of self-reflection. 

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			<pubDate>Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:14:26 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Launch Publication Beyond Orthodox Approaches]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-in-West-Asia/Events/Launch-Publication-Beyond-Orthodox-Approaches</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
 Within the framework of Knowledge Programme Civil Society in West Asia, Hivos in collaboration with NIMD ad University of Amsterdam, will launch on 26 March 2010 the policy paper ‘Beyond Orthodox Approaches, Assessing Opportunities for Democratic Support in the Middle East and North Africa. The launch will take place at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 

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			<pubDate>Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:08:03 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Book on Value Chain Finance ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Publications2/Book-on-Value-Chain-Finance</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
In large parts of the world, small-scale farmers, traders and processors are constrained in their business operations due to a lack of finance. Farmers want to be paid immediately, but traders do not have the ready cash to buy their produce. Traders need working capital so they can buy and transport produce, but lack the collateral to get loans. Processors cannot get the money they need to buy equipment or ensure a steady supply of inputs. 

]]></description>
			<pubDate>Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:48:11 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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								<item>
			<title><![CDATA[Launch Publication Beyond Orthodox Approaches]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-in-West-Asia/News/Launch-Publication-Beyond-Orthodox-Approaches</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
Within the framework of Knowledge Programme Civil Society in West Asia, Hivos in collaboration with NIMD ad University of Amsterdam, will launch on 26 March 2010 the policy paper ‘Beyond Orthodox Approaches, Assessing Opportunities for Democratic Support in the Middle East and North Africa. The launch will take place at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.


This publication aims to explore what role - if any - external organisations, such as Hivos and NIMD, can play to further democratisation in the region. The authors of this policy paper have examined and reflected upon the programmatic opportunities and potential obstacles for engaging in and with the region. By increasing their knowledge of the political landscapes of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and by focusing on potential windows of opportunities or the closings thereof - where increased authoritarianism prohibits possibilities for assistance – Hivos and NIMD hope to improve their understanding of the dynamics in the region and what could potentially constitute vital building blocks for a programme in the region. Hivos and NIMD are fully aware that the political systems in the region provide challenges for democracy support. Research on possible methodologies that focus on levelling the playing field in uncongenial authoritarian settings are therefore essential. NIMD works predominantly in young democracies and fragile states that require different programmatic approaches than when working in the political setting of the Middle East and North Africa. Hivos, in contrast, does work in authoritarian and semi-authoritarian settings and is searching for ways to circumvent programmatic constraints, in addition to deepening its knowledge of the political systems in the region.


Hivos and NIMD want to maximise their complementarities of expertise by pooling resources: experience and research into democracy support. Hivos and NIMD would subsequently like to assess the possibilities for joint programmatic approaches. Hivos and NIMD feel that it is imperative to learn from one another. They believe that civil and political society can be regarded as two sides of a tunnel, interlinked – and especially in the MENA region – frequently merged in one single organisation. Understanding both types of societies as well as the relationship between them is essential for fostering democratisation processes in the region.


If you are interested in attending this event, please send an email to Kawa Hassan at khassan@hivos.nl. 


Date: 26-03-2010


Time: 15.00-17.00


Venue: : VOC hal, Oost Indisch Huis E0.02, Kloveniersburgwal 48, University of Amsterdam 

]]></description>
			<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:18:04 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Meet the Web 2.0 Suicide Machine]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Communities/Knowledge-for-Development/Columns-Discussion/Meet-the-Web-2.0-Suicide-Machine</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
In the new year, 2010, one of the most startling stories was of mass suicides. About 50,000 people were affected. Legal cases were filed. The interwebz were abuzz with the tale of how they did it. There was talk about a website that was responsible for this. The blogosphere went into a frenzy discussing the ‘new lease of life’ that these suicides provided. Videos of people caught in the act found their way onto popular video distributing spaces. And for everybody who talked about it, it was partly a joke and partly a gimmick. However, for a significant population, across the globe, the news came as a shock and a moment of self-reflection. 

]]></description>
			<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:43:29 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Book on Value Chain Finance ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Small-Producer-Agency/News/Book-on-Value-Chain-Finance</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
In large parts of the world, small-scale farmers, traders and processors are constrained in their business operations due to a lack of finance. Farmers want to be paid immediately, but traders do not have the ready cash to buy their produce. Traders need working capital so they can buy and transport produce, but lack the collateral to get loans. Processors cannot get the money they need to buy equipment or ensure a steady supply of inputs. 

]]></description>
			<pubDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:22:05 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Imitation of the West'? Civil society in the Arab world ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-in-West-Asia/News/Imitation-of-the-West-Civil-society-in-the-Arab-world</link>
			<description><![CDATA[

On Thursday 28 January 2010, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi declared in a televised address to the General People's Congress that the idea of civil society &amp;quot;is a bourgeois culture and an imitation of the West that has no place here [in Libya]&amp;quot; . Gaddafi's statement last week drew particular media attention because it came on the eve of a proposal due to be announced by his son, Saif al-Islam, which would have permitted the creation of NGOs. 
 Gaddafi's comments were grounded in Libyan history, and specifically within the unique context of Jamahiriya (‘direct democracy' or ‘state of the masses'). In this proclaimed view of society, popular local councils and communes rely on mass citizen involvement to run the country, blurring and removing the supposedly Western distinction between the state and civil society. Nevertheless, the sentiments which underpinned Gaddafi's comments - and specifically the notion that the idea of civil society is rooted in a culturally alien agenda - are ones which civil society activists across the Arab world have long found themselves confronted by. Against this challenging background, what role exists for international organisations in promoting the growth of civil society in the Arab region?  

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			<pubDate>Wed, 03 Mar 2010 09:17:12 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Claims to Success: ICT based Advocacy for the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-Building/News/Claims-to-Success-ICT-based-Advocacy-for-the-Protocol-on-the-Rights-of-Women-in-Africa</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
How can the internet be used to promote the advocacy efforts by civil society organizations? In this paper, Caroline Kemp reflects on this question by examining the Solidarity for Women’s Rights Coalition (SOAWR) and their work towards promoting the Protocol for Women’s rights in Africa. The African Union adopted this protocol in 2005, but to date the ratification, popularization and implementation by member-states has been a slow process. SOAWR been instrumental in civic efforts to promote the protocol with an prominent role for ICTs in the advocacy repertoire. The study zooms in on internet based ICTs in general and the use of Pambazuka news, an electronic newsletter abut social justice in Africa, in particular. 

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			<pubDate>Fri, 26 Feb 2010 15:56:32 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Social Capital and Authoritarianism ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-in-West-Asia/News/Social-Capital-and-Authoritarianism</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
It is widely recognized that social capital is essential for the existence and working of civil society and democracy. This recognition though is largely related to democratic regimes. Less is known on how (the lack) of social capital could affect civic engagement in authoritarian contexts. Read the report of the seminar ‘What is the role of social capital in authoritarian settings?’ held on the 15th of January 2010 at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 

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			<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:11:04 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Social Capital and Authoritarianism ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/News/Social-Capital-and-Authoritarianism</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
It is widely recognized that social capital is essential for the existence and working of civil society and democracy. This recognition though is largely related to democratic regimes. Less is known on how (the lack) of social capital could affect civic engagement in authoritarian contexts. Read the report of the seminar ‘What is the role of social capital in authoritarian settings?’ held on the 15th of January 2010 at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 

]]></description>
			<pubDate>Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:07:16 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Human rights NGOs have to think more strategically]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Civil-Society-Building/News/Human-rights-NGOs-have-to-think-more-strategically</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
Do NGOs and other civic actors undertake the most effective measures to hold governments accountable to their international obligations to protect human rights, and in particular to protect vulnerable populations? Jeff Handmaker, ISS lecturer and member of the Hivos/ISS Civil Society Building Knowledge Programme team, explores this question in the book ''Advocating for Accountability, civic-state interactions to Protect Refugees in South Africa&amp;quot;. The work of human rights organizations is rarely critically evaluated, possibly related to the fact that the issues they deal with are felt to be so important, that the mistakes they often make are mostly tolerated. 

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			<pubDate>Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:17:39 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Framing and Claiming Reproductive Rights: A Case Study of Civil Society Actors in Tanzania]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Publications2/Framing-and-Claiming-Reproductive-Rights-A-Case-Study-of-Civil-Society-Actors-in-Tanzania</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
How do grassroots organizations engage with, understand and use human rights discourses? In the current development context many civil society actors have adopted a ‘rights based approach’ (RBA). However, ‘human rights’ are often articulated at the international level, but understood, experienced and practiced in a local context. What does this dynamic imply for the way local civil society actors lobby the state to implement global human rights at a national policy level? 

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			<pubDate>Wed, 17 Feb 2010 23:47:44 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Seizing and Stretching Participatory Space: Civil Society Participation in Tanzania’s Policy Processes]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Publications2/Seizing-and-Stretching-Participatory-Space-Civil-Society-Participation-in-Tanzania-s-Policy-Processes</link>
			<description><![CDATA[

 Civil society participation in PRSP processes has become part and parcel of modern aid modities. Assumed benefits include stronger checks and balances, inclusion of marginalized interests, and a broader support base for implementation. This hints at transformative potential. Yet, where governments or donors drive the process, participation hardly ever surpasses a mere consultative role and risks of cooption loom large. 

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			<pubDate>Wed, 17 Feb 2010 23:47:30 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Presentation by PhytoTrade @ Hivos ]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Small-Producer-Agency/News/Presentation-by-PhytoTrade-Hivos</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
On Monday, February 15th, Gus le Breton, CEO at the Hivos partner PhytoTrade Africa gave a public presentation on a new biobased produce that PhytoTrade wants to bring from the very rural areas of Africa to the world market: Baobab Superfruit. The meeting was attended by about twenty people from various academic institutes, companies and organisations that are all active in the promotion of sustainable economic development and the access of the poor to the market.

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			<pubDate>Wed, 17 Feb 2010 21:40:35 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Bridging knowledge divides]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Publications2/Bridging-knowledge-divides</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
This study examines how the Development Policy Review Network (DPRN) has contributed to more effective research-policy linkages in the field of Dutch Development Cooperation. The objective of the study comes forth from the difficulty DPRN has experienced in involving policymakers (defined as staff of ministries and embassies) in its activities.

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			<pubDate>Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:41:51 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Bridging knowledge divides]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/News/Bridging-knowledge-divides</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
This study examines how the Development Policy Review Network (DPRN) has contributed to more effective research-policy linkages in the field of Dutch Development Cooperation. The objective of the study comes forth from the difficulty DPRN has experienced in involving policymakers (defined as staff of ministries and embassies) in its activities.

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			<pubDate>Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:40:29 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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			<title><![CDATA[Fill the Gap Report]]></title>
			<link>http://www.hivos.net/Hivos-Knowledge-Programme/Themes/Digital-Natives-with-a-Cause/News/Fill-the-Gap-Report</link>
			<description><![CDATA[
In 2009 Hivos and the Centre for Internet and Society started a mapping study Digital Natives with a Cause? What we found was that many people see the potential of Youth, ICT and development, but nobody knows exactly who the Digital Natives are and how you can unleash this potential. At Fill the Gap we invited youth in the Netherlands to discuss and respond online (via Twitter) to six statements. Read the summary.

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			<pubDate>Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:32:09 +0100</pubDate>                                                           
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